On the Memorial Wall in Haslar Naval Cemetery, Portsmouth is the name of K/11579 Acting Leading Stoker Bernard Leven [Leaven] serving on HM Submarine L55 with the Royal Navy who died 04/09/1919.
Jean Longstaff has submitted the following:
Born on 31st January 1892 in West Hartlepool to Irish born dock labourer James Leaven and his Scottish born wife Catherine (nee O’Hara), Bernard was one of their seven children. Mary was born in 1883 the year after their marriage, and she was followed by Norah, James, John, Bernard, Kathleen and finally Josephine in 1898.
In 1891 the family were living in Ada Street, Hartlepool, but there is no trace of any the family on the 1901 census. At the time of the 1911 census in April Bernard was working as a coal miner and lodging, along with his brother John, with the Darby family In Lord Street, Trimdon Foundry, but by June he had enlisted in the Royal Navy and was a Stoker Second Class on board HMS Victory II, working his way to become Stoker First Class within eighteen months.
On 28th August 1914 Bernard was on board HMS Fearless, which took part in the first naval battle of World War 1, the Battle of Heligoland Bight, during which he was slightly wounded.
In December 1914 he began working on submarine supply ships the Dolphin and Titania, and based in Portsmouth he met and married Agnes Elizabeth Gregory in St.Mary de Crypt, Gloucester on 1st July 1916. September 1917 saw him posted to HMS Lucia for three months, sailing with the 10th Submarine Flotilla based at Teesport, near Middlesbrough.
Back on HMS Dolphin and based in Portsmouth, the 1918 Register of Electors show Bernard and Agnes living in Albion Cottage, Southgate Street, Gloucester.
In February 1919 Bernard joined the crew of submarine HMS L55, becoming Acting Leading Stoker a month later. HMS L55 was part of the Baltic Battle Squadron which was supporting the Baltic countries fight for independence. On 9th June 1919 in the Gulf of Finland L55 attacked two Bolshevik destroyers, the Gavriil and Azard, but he torpedoes missed their targets and on being attacked by the destroyers the L55 was forced into a British-laid minefield and was sunk with the loss of all crew.
The wreck was found by a Soviet minesweeper in 1927, and raised on 11th August 1928. As British warships were not allowed into Soviet waters the remains of 34 of the 42 crew members were returned on a British merchant ship before being transferred to HMS Champion. The crew was buried with full military honours in a communal grave at Haslar Royal Naval Cemetery in Portsmouth on 7th September 1928.
Bernard Leaven is remembered in our List of Ships’ Crews.
